accordingly we have taken unpres depted steps to declassify and make facts available to people that can judge for themselves but still in order to protect sours and methods, some of what we know will only be released to members was congress and representatives of the american people. that means that some things we do know, we can't talk about publicly. and so what do we really know that we can talk about? well, we know that the assad regime has the largest chemical weapon's program in the entire middle east. we know the regime has used the weapons, multiple times this year and used them on a mauler scale, but still used them against its own people including not very far from last wednesday's attack has happen.

we know that the regime was specifically determined to rid the damascus suburbs of the opposition and it was frustrated that it hadn't succeeded in doing so. three days before the attack chemical weapons personnel were on the ground in the area making preparations and we know that the syrian regime elements were told to prepare for the attack by putting on gas masks and taking precautions associated with chemical weapons. we know they were specific instructions. we know where the rockets were launched from. and at what time, we know where they landed. and when. we know rockets came only from regime controlled areas and went only to opposition controlled or

contested neighborhoods. and we know as does the world, that just 90 minutes later all hell broke loose in the social media with our own eyes we have seen the thousands of reports from 11 separate sites in the damascus suburbs, all of them show and report victims, with breathing difficulties and people twitching and rapid heart beats and foaming in the mouth and unconsciousness and death. we know it was ordinary syrian citizens who reported all of these horrors. and just as important, we know what the doctors and the nurses who treated them didn't report. not a scratch. not a wound or cut or gun shot wound.

we saw rows of dead lined up in burial shrouds, the white linen unstained by a single drop of blood. instead of being tucked safely in their beds at home, we saw rows of children, lying side by side, sprawled on a hospital floor, all of them dead from assad's gas and surrounded by parents and grand parents that suffered the same fate. the united states government knows 1400 syrians were killed in this attack including 426 children. even the first responders, the doctors, the nurses and medics who tried to save them, they became victims themselves. we saw them gasping for air and

terrified of the danger of the lives. this is the horror of chemical weapons and this is what assad did to his own people. we also know many disturbing details about the aftermath. we know that a senior regime official who anyhow about the attack confirmed that chemical weapons were used by the regime. reviewed the impact and actually was afraid they would be discovered. we know this. and we know what they did next. i personally called the foreign minister of syria and i said to them if as you say your nation has nothing to hide, then let the united nations in immediately and give the inspector it is unfettered access so they can tell your story.

instead for four days, they shelled the neighborhood in order to destroy evident. bomb boarding block after block at a rate four times higher than they had over the previous 10 days. and when the un inspectors finally gained access, that access was restricted and controlled. in all of these things that i have listed, in all of these things that we know, all of them, the american intelligence community has high confidence. this is common sense, this is evidence, these are facts. and so the primary question is really no longer what do we know? the question is what do we in the world going to do about it? as previous stops in history

have gathered and when unspokable crimes were within our power to stop them, we have been warned against the temptations of looking the other way. history is full of leaders who warned of inaction and indifference and silence when it mattered most. our choices then in history had great consequences and our choice today has great consequences. it matters that nearly 100 years ago in direct response to the utter horror and inhumanity of world war one that the civilized world agreed chemical weapons should never be used again. that was the resolve then and that began a century effort to create a clear redline for the international community. it matters today that we are working as an international community to red the world of

the worst weapons. that's why we signed the stark treaty and the chemical weapons convention which more than 180 countries including iran, iraq it matters to our security and to the security of our allies. it matters to israel. it matters to our close friends, jordan, turkey and lebanon, all of whom who live a stiff breeze away from damascus. it matters to all of them where the syrian chemical weapons are and if unchecked, they can cause greater death and destruction to the friends. and it matters deeply to the credibility and future interests of the united states of america and our allies. it matters because a lot of other countries whose policy challenge the international norms are watching.

they are watching. they want to see whether the united states and our friends mean what we say. it is directly related to our credibility and whether countries still believe that the united states when it says something. they are watching to so if syria can get away with it and because then maybe they, too can put the world at greater risk. and make no mistake in an increasingly complicated world of secitarian and religious extremist violence, what we choose to do or not do, matters in real ways to our own security. some cite the risk of doing things. we need to ask what is the risk of doing nothing? it matters because if we choose to live in a world where a thug and murderer like bashar a l-

assad can gas with impunityine after the united states said no and the world does nothing about it. there will be no end to the test of our resolve and the dangers from others who believe they can do as they will. this matters also beyond the limits of syria's borders. it is iran a victim of chemical weapons attack will feel emboldened in the nuclear weapons and about hesbollah and north korea and every other terrorist group or dictator that might constep plate the use of weapons of mass destruction. will they remember that the assad regime was stopped from the weapons current or future use. or will they remember that the world stood aside and created

impunity? and so our concern is not just about some far- off land, oceans away. it is not what this is about. our concern with the cause of the defenseless people of syria is about choices, that will directly affect our role in the world and our interest in the world and profoundly about who we are. and we are the united states of america. we are the country that has tried not always successfully. but always tried to honor a set of union versal values around which we organized our lives and aspirations and the crime against conscience and against humanity and the international norm community, this matters to us. and it matters to who we are.

and it matters to leadership and to our credibility in the world. my friends, it matters here if nothing is done. it matters if the world speaks out in condemnation and nothing happens. america should feel confident and gratified that we are not alone in our condemnation and we are not alone in our will to do something about it and to act. the world is speaking out. and many friends stand ready to respond. the arab league pledged "to hold the syrian regime fully responsible for this crime". the organization for islamic organization condemned the regime and said "we need to hold the syrian government legally and morally accountable for the heinnous crime. ".

turkey said "there is no doubt that the regime is responsible. ". the oldest alley the french. the regime committed this action and outrage to use weapons that the community has banned for the last 90 years in all international conventions. the australian prime minister said he didn't want history to record that we were "a party to turning such a blind eye." now that we know what we know, the question is what will we do let me empsoys. president obama and we in the united states we believe in the united nations and great respect for the brave inspector who endured regime gunfire and obstructions to their investigation. and as the security general moon said again and again, the un

investigation will not affirm who used these chemical weapons. that is not the mandate of the un investigation. they will only a whether such weapons were used. by the definition of their own mandate, the un can't tell us anything that we haven't shared with you this afternoon and we don't already know and because of the guaranteed russian obstructionism of any action of the un security council, the un cannot dwaflinnize the world to act the way it should. let me be clear, we'll talk to the congress and talking to our allies and most importantly talking to the american people and president obama will insure that the united states of america makes our decisions on our own time lines and based on our value asks in our interest.

now we know that after a decade of conflict, the american people are tired of war. believe me i am, too. fatigue does not absofsh us of our responsibility. just longing for peace does not necessarily bring it about. history would judge us all extraordinarily harshly if we turn a blind eye to the dictator wanton use of weapons of mass destruction against all warnings, also all common understanding of decency, these things we do know. we also know that we have a president who does what he said he will do. and he has said clearly that whatever decision he makes in syria, it will bear no resemblance to afghanistan iraq or libya.

it will not involve boots on the ground and will not be open- ended and it will not assume responsibility for a civil war that is well underway. the president has been clear. any action that he might decide to take will be limited in tailored repons to insure that a despot's use of chemical weapons. is held accountable. and ultimately we are committed and remain committed and primary objective to have a diplomatic process that can resolve this through negotiation. and it is a military solution. and it has to be political. it has to happen in the negotiating table. and we are deeply committed to getting there. so that is what we know. that's what the leaders of

congress now know and that's what the american people need to know. and that is at the core of the decisions that must now be made in the security of our country and the promise of the planet where the world's most heinnous weapons will not beoused against the world's most vulnerable people. fox news alert. secretary of state john kerry just wrapping up remarks as fox news gets the first copy of the declassified intelligence report on the syrian regime use of chemical weapons. it was physical evidence and intercepted surveillance and videotape. it was a interesting laying out of the evidence and welcome to america live. i am gregg jarret.

>> a lot of questions were answered. i am jamie colby in for megyn kelliy. it may be hard to get your head around the horrors described by secretary kerry. the more than 400 children that died. they didn't have a mark on them and they were the victims of some sort of chemical weapon's attack and they were not alone. the injure added by the syrian government when they shelled the same neighborhood they gassed and kerry called an attempt to bomb the evidence out of existence. president obama met with the full national security council staff to discuss the crisis in syria. the president is deciding whether to launch a military strike with or without our allies. >> all of this in response to the chemical weapon's attack.

last week there were hundreds of people reported killed in the assault. and as president obama considers his options, there is concerns that we may have waited too long to do the strike allowing the assad regime to move it from the bases that are hit in and strike. we have so many questions about what we just heard. it seems that secretary kerry laid out a good case for taking action. >> he did. he made it very clear that the president will back up the rhetoric with military action and there was a pivotal moment here in the white house we should talk about. a national security council meeting here as you pointed out this morning before secretary kerry spoke. i spoke to officials here, what is happening? what is secretary kerry going to

say? tap on the brakes and take a breath after the british parliment tapped the brakes? he said we have consulted with congress through a conference call last night and keep talking to law makers and explain what is coming and he said we will release to the public as they have done a four- page intelligence assessment released by the white house to the american public. and we'll not have a repeeft iraq. we'll make sure the intelligence backs up the fact that wmd. weapons of mass destruction was susused by the syrian regime. we'll regroup here and the rest of the statement as you suggested, the cost of doing nothing is too great. that is what secretary kerry said again and again. you can't turn a blind eye to the dictator and gassing his own

people. it was a firm and passionate case for military action. we are expecting to hear from the president later this afternoon. and he has a meeting with baltic leaders and supposed to make remarks in the top of the meeting. after secretary kerry remarks, i think it is pretty clear we'll likely hear from the president to back up what secretary kerry just said. we are not rushing in to war and carefully consulting with people and getting ready to go. there are going to be lippingering questions about a president who came to power and talking about getting un man dates and congressional consultation but getting authization before using military force. >> that was a big question that everyone wanted to know if congress will be consulted. james rosen is waiting for us in

the state house and he called assad a thug and a murderer and more they know that has to remain classified and whatever they do, it will not resemble iraq or afghanistan. how important is it congress to to hear? he said it matters to us. >> that was the main message of the message, this matters and that message he intended for several audience. congress, and american public and the rest of the populations of the arab and muslim world in the middle east an important audience. something he said significant and some things left out were significant. he said the united states and administration is consulting and talking to congress, but did not seeking sanctions from congress. and secretary kerry said the risk of doing nothing.

critics say that that is a risk that the administration is willing to accept far too long in syria and complicated the current crisis. and secretary kerry, he talked about the dangers of the chemical weapons are left unchecked. that is a hint of the targets we are going to so. we reported yesterday and today based on sources that i talked with. the scope of the bombing will be outside of damascus and will target the chemical weapon's delivery systems. and we heard about the dangers of leaving those weapons unchecked. that is an indication. >> and lastly it was interesting to see what the secretary assign the death toll. 1429 syrians killed in the chemical weapons attack and a third of them. 426 of them children, jamie?

>> he saidine if military action taken without boots on the ground, the solution must come politically in the negotiating table. jams, keep monitor for us. james rosen in the state department. >> if you missed the remarks, there were powerful ones from secretary of state john kerry, just moments ago, describing the horror committed in syria. take a listen to this. >> we saw rows of dead lined up in burial shrouds, the white linen unstained by a single drop of blood. instead of being tucked safely in their beds at home, we saw rows of children lying side by side, sprawled on a hospital floor, all of them dead from arcs sad's gas and surrounded by parents and grand parents that suffered the same fate. ntom bevin is executive editor.

and ralph peters is a fox analyst and author of hell or rich mopped. >> and tom, starting with you. a powerful case was laid out that chemical weapons were used, was there a clear case however, that some military response by the united states should be used in response to it? >> well, that was the one thing that was missing. secretary kerry made the best case he could make in broad terms, but you know, what the public and what congress are looking for is more of a plan. what does that mean? what does the attack entail and what is the strategy beyond the initial strike and what sort of consequences intended or unintended are we looking at. he left that out and i am sure will be fleshed out in the days to come. >> ralph, let me go to you.

charles krauthammer said the only purpose for a military strike by president obama is assuage the guilty cop science and vindicate the vanity of this president. is it a valid point, the president got the united states boxed in a corner by foolishly drawing a redline? >> yes tis all about obama's image. let me comment on kerry's speech. >> go a head. >> melodrama is not a substitute for a strategy. two key points here, one, for all of the violence and sorrow, he did not explain why there is a role and present danger to the united states that merits use of military forces. he did not seem to grasp that the assad regime is not targeting america with chemical weapons and if the a sad regime

call and al-qaeda and other islamist get their hands on the weapons we face a greater danger. and the remarks were stunning and resoflting when he called assad a thug and murderer who killed thousands of his own people with poiseinous gas, he described saddam hussein. saddam hussein killed over a mill one people. where was kerry and obama then? is there a difference a good dictator who used good poisonous gas. that was all melodrama and appealing to the emotions and we need hard- headed rational strt strat. >> tom, the united states has not entervened in a course of a throw- year war in which a hundred thousand people died in bruttial a tablgs many of them committed by assad and yet

the president appears to be intervene when 1400 people are killed in chemical attacks. does that strieb people as incongruous. >> the president is in a tough spot politically. kerry went out of his way to mention the un and the vote in great britain will not be with us and we don't have support from the arab league ornato and the president is isolated with the exception of france. and we saw the majority of the public is against it. 80 percent of the public feels that the president needs to go to congress and we have 200 members in congress urging the president to consult and get their authorization. kerry indicated that they will consult with them, but he did not make a declaration that they would seek congressional operation. and congress is it not come back for another ten days. the further we get away from the

actual point of the attack and imminency argument that ralph mentioned loses the luster. >> former president jimmy carter that a strike would be illegal if initiated by president obama and then senator and candidate for president obama, in 2007, we put this on the screen, he wrote this. the president does not have the power under the constitution to unlaterally authorize a military attack in a situation that is it not involve stopping an actual or imminent threat to the nation. given what secretary kerry said a moment ago, it sounds as if the president will consult and not soak the authorization. we'll go to judy miller standing by in the newsroom and you are watching and your reaction? >> the enorm muspower of the secretary's spoech rests in the

invocation of a doctorine we have not heard about. responsibility to protect. the short- hand for it the r2 p. and said that human beings, countries have an obligation to protect people who are being slaught ared in mass numbers and in 20005. there was a summit. international summit in which the world signed on to the doctrine. in order to invoke this dock rein to make it politically acceptable you have to have the un security council blessing and he doesn't have. the secretaryatoid the use of chemical weapons to american interest by saying if we do nothing here, iran will not leave us and may move to the nuclear weapon and others may

use the weapons against us one day. that is called a preventive use of force. it doesn't make a legal but makes it a political and humanitarian statement and the reason for intervention. >> and yet things are committed on other places all of the time and we don't engage in the doctrinement. we'll may a clip of secretary of state john kerry. >> with our own eyes, we have seen the thousands of reports from 11 separate sites in the damascus suburbs, all of them show and report victims with breathing difficulties, people twitching with spasms and coughing and rapid heart beats and foaming at the mouth and unconsciousness and death. >> again, ralph, awful things,

heinnous and cruel acts happen and the united states does not intervene. >> i am not heartless. i feel for the victims. we have had a decade of do- gooder wars that didn't do much good. i believe because of kerry's speech obama will attack and he will attack and make things worse. your point is critical. in the turn of the millennium and in the wars in eastern congo, 3- 4 million black people. no one cared and there was no luxury hotels for the reporters. what about the muslims in burma right now. look at what the use of poison use. and much broader by sated sat saddam hussein. i feel motor people but my

caring is the peace and prosperity to the united states. i don't see a threat that merits the use of military force. >> tom, the president and the white house and other agencies have essentially leaked the details of what we are about to do. you know, the source and weapons and duration and the purpose, and one can argue that the president here has drawn this out and dithered as some call it. has that dithering allowed assad to move the military assets avoid consequences. >> there are reports to that affect, gregg. let me go back to congress. it is important. if obama does decide to go to congress. it is a place, speaking to staffers on the hill just today about this, over the last five

years, president obama, his relationship with congress is not great and there is not a resvorof good will. if he goes that route it is a moment of need and if he decides not to go to congress that is perilous politically. he is in a tough spot. >> ralph, secretary kerry said what is the risk of doing nothing? that is a risk. but one could say there is a greater risk of doing something and that could be the retaliation by anyone from syria directly on to jordan or western assets or hesbollah in southern lebanon could attack strategy location. >> you have to weigh the risk of doing something and getting it

wrong. if you want to have an affective military attack. you want surprise and sufficient force to make a decisive different. pin prick strikes will encourage assad and also iran to believe we are timid and symbolic of not meaning it. what happens if there is devastating strikes against assad. then you have al-qaeda in damascus and probably with chemical weapons. what is happening here, our president as charles krauthammer observed, has backed himself in the corner and wants the military to get him out of. it to me the consequences of doing nothing for now, are less threatening. nalthough krauthammer said retribution is not a valid purpose. but a strategy purpose of removing the assad regime might

be. he argued one point in time u.s. stand off systems could degrade the military and wall street journal why not a military strike to take out assad himself. >> may i answer that? >> because assad is a monster and a thug and murderer. kerry is right. but he is charcoal gray and al-qaeda is black. if the alternative is a rump stay of syria and division of syria and islamist in damascus with chemical weapons. is that better for us or israel. charles krauthammer is america's most brilliant columnist. he thinks that get rid of assad. and i think better to cope al-qaeda on the ropes. >> many thanks to tom bevin and ralph ports. appreciate your insights. >> just the beginning of our

look. and what is happening in the unite the nations and what is happening in the middle east and what we expect now in the white house. >> we know where the rockets were launched from and what time. and we know where they landed and when. we know that rockets came only from regime controlled areas and went only to opposition controlled and contested neighborhoods.

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children. even the first responders, the doctors, nurses and medics who tried to save them, they became victims themselves we saw them gasping for air and terrified their own lives were in danger. this is the indiscriminate and inconceivable horror of chemical weapons. this is what assad did to his own people. >> back to our top story now. syria, we just got the administration's report on what happened in the chemical attack near damascus last week and heard as you saw some of it. secretary kerry describing parts of that report. at the same time unight the nations chemical weapons. aelgdzs that the regime attacked with poisonous gas. and diplomats brace for

a possible strike at the regime. david miller is standing by live. >> in essence we have doouling news conferences before the secretary of state began to speak. spokesman for the united nations held's news conference and he was asked if he anyhow about the assertions made by the secretary of state that chemical weapons were used in syria and he said not to my knowledge. we learned that the un weapons inspectors will be leaving tomorrow. translators have already left. their mission for the most part is completed and samples are collected and they are now packing up. and the report that they are preparing is going to address what took place on august 21st and that is an incident in which syrians were killed by chemical

weapons. and we are told that there would be no time line for the final report. they would try to expedite the analysis. and spokesman for the secretary general, can chemical weapons used or not used. >> this is not an electoral process where you have exit polls and prelimary results. it is a scientific process and only result that counts is the result of the analysis in the laboratories and analysis of the evidence that is collected through witness statements and the report will give the conclusions. we learned that the un weapons inspectors are expected to return to syria to investigate other claims of the use of

chemical weapons, but the primary purpose to determine whether or not they were used on august 21st. and their mission to determine if chemical weapons were used and not in and way on to assess blame and determine who used it and was responsible. >> thank you. >> and earlier today, we saw polls that suggested that there is little support for military action against syria and there is a lot of reluxance on capitol hill about getting involved in a now war in the middle east. and that may explain why kerry emotional case. >> this crime against conscience. and crime agains humanity. and the crime against the follow-uppedmentam principles of international community and against the norm of the international community. this matters to us.

and it matters to where we are. and matters to leadership. and to our credibility in the world. >> and andy don't is a talk show host. and frank is one. welcome to both of you. andy, i got an e-mail from a commander in afghanistan that i have known many years, a major general and he basically said it was a powerful speech but you have to have a plan. beginning and middle and end. what you heard is a formal plan that we'll have an end? >> right, obviously john kerry gave an emotional speech and everyone is simthetic for kids getting gassed. but the question is what happens next? if obama lobs cruise missiles.

it will sti be an islamic civil war. that will not change no matter what obama does. >> julie, as you listen to the speech and the reassurances to the american public. americans can decide for themselves. we are taking an unprecedented step of declassifying some information and look at it and decide if the attack took place it did with high levels of confidence. and said that the action has to be swift, serious and must accomplish what? >> that is a great question. i agree with what andy just said. what does it accomplish? in the end of the day, i believe that bashar a l- assad used them. it is not a new thing for his regime and my heart tells me to

be punished for it. it is in flames from egypt and syria and libya and iraq and so to iraq that is ongoing. i would like to know the answer to that and the president has not answered that sufficiently for me to support any kind of activity now. >> this talk by secretary kerry is all we know. we have yet to hear from the president. one of the things that secretary kerry said. we'll talking to congress and we'll make our own decision in our own time line. for those in congress who wrote letters and said i want to be consulted on this, what answer do you think they got? >> i think obama will not take

action without the british. and the british will wait for another vote. and we have un inspectors that are hanging around damascus in the four seasons. we'll not throw cruise missiles until they are out of the four seasons. we need to be grateful to the state of israel. in 2007. assad was developing a nuclear program and israel went in there and it was not discussed widely and they destroyed the program. can you misdemeanoring he had nuclear weapons. it would be much worse. >> you are right israel paid action and they are paying attention. >> and in the meantime, julie, one of the things that secretary kerry said. he spoke to the foreign minister of syria asking for access and

four days later, the evidence was blocked. basically saying we'll not get their cooperation. does that leave us with less of a choice? he said diplomacy is the real solution with syria >> it would be a great solution to have somebody to negotiate with. i think it is obvious to me that the assad regime is not interested in negotiation. they are enablers with the russians and the chemical weapons, and they will not side with us in the un. i am not sure who to negotiate with. >> the point that i think kerry made. if we do nothing here. what coined of mess amg and signal does that say to the iranians? and having said all of that and the president is in a tough bind

in this, what exactly and lobbying cruise missiles is not doing anything to the regime. and we topple the regime, what comes next. >> that was brought to my attention by somebody i respect so much. you got to have a strategy and end point. >> it is all about diplomacy. and so syria will look like somalia. >> if he is around at that point to come to the table. it is great to talk to you. >> and how about. this we got word to expect remarks from the president on syria in 20 minutes. we'll have that for you live. and we have got dramatic news from the pentagon worried that syria moved the dangerous

missiles out of use of the u.s. military. displacing the military assets. and reports on a glimmer of hope coming from a man sentenced to life in prison after doing more than anything elseladen. also, cops have a showdown in the breakdown lane as a state trooper and local officers getting in a dust-up with each other on the side of the highway. trace explains what this is next. >> we had three police impersonators. carjacking, guns, the whole nine yards. if you don't believe it, i want my detectives to call you. i want them to personally call you. i'm a rookie and i don't know what the [ bleep ] -- >> calm down. [ male announcer ] running out of steam? ♪ now you can give yourself a kick in the rear!

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fox news alert. we are just getting word to expect some taped remarks from president obama about 15 minute from now. he's expected to talk about syria. he's at a meeting he had already scheduled with some leaders from the baltic states. if you're just joining us, secretary john kerry gave a very emotional description of the events in syria. that happened just a short while ago, describing in detail how at least 400 children died 1400 people total in what was conf m confirmed as a chemical weapons attack outside da mmascus. when the president speaks, we will be there. >> have you seen this video exchange? this is an eye opening difference of opinion between a state trooper and local cops

caught on a dashcam. the whole thing playing out on the side of a busy interstate. traffic zipping along and the two suspects standing identically by while the officers had it out. trace gallagher with the story now. hey, trace. >> greg, i've never seen a confrontation between police officers like this. what happened we had two plain clothes officers from new jersey driving an unmarked minivan and pulled over a car on the new jersey turnpike. the state trooper saw that and he knows in the past couple of months there have been a number of robberies caused by police who were impersonating or -- yeah, impersonating police officers. he pulls over. he decides to go up and check it out. the first part of this whole thing was laced with the f word. we cut that out. so we'll pick it up at the meat of the argument. it is very heated. list listen. >> [ bleep ] look like -

like -- [ inaudible ] [ bleep ]. >> they've been impersonating, a rash of three of them in the last month in unmarked cars, a rash of police impersonators. >> keep in mind the two suspects are still in the car, still in the car listening to this whole thing. the plain clothed cops then call the trooper a rookie. you finally have a sergeant that shows up from the police office, but still the argument goes on. listen. >> you don't know the story. you're still acting like a [ bleep ] i just told oo the story. >> when plain clothed guys do that -- >> they let us know if they're not plain clothed guys out here working. >> i tried to explain to you, we had three police impersonators. they're out here robbing people, carjacking, guns, the whole nine

yards. >> by the way, very unclear why the bergen county cops pulled over the car in the first place, greg, but they were disciplined. >> trace gallagher, quite an exchange. thanks very much. >> we have to get back to our serious story, the time in the middle east. more on that. let's play: [ all ] who's new in the fridge! i help support bones... [ ding! ] ...the immune system... [ ding! ] ...heart health... [ ding! ] ...and muscles. [ ding! ] that can only be ensure complete! [ female announcer ] the four-in-one nutrition of ensure complete. a simple choice to help u eat right. [ major nutrition ] nutrition in charge. no-charge scheduled maintenance. check. and here's the kicker... 0% apr for 60 months. and who got it? this guy. and who got it? this guy. and who got it? this guy. that's right...

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18 percent? 20? new purina one true instinct has 30. active dogs crave nutrient-dense food. so we made purina one true instinct. learmore at purinaone.com fox news alert. a week after waiting for intelligence reports, the shoe dropped about an hour ago, the u.s. denouncing the assad regime for crimes against humanity declaring they will not go unpunished. welcome. this is a brand new hour of "america live." i'm jamijamie. >> president obama stepping up to the podium laying out the in information in detail. secretary kerry. >> the united states knows

one,400 syrians were killed in this attack including 426 children. even the first responders and doctors and medics who tried to save them became victims themselves. we saw them gasping for air, terrified their own lives were in danger. this is the indiscriminate, inconceivable horror of chemical weapons. this is what assad did to his own people. >> now the entire middle east region bracing for what could come next. israel deploying its advanced missile defense system known as the iron dome, they're deploying it near the syrian border as israelis prepare for the possibility assad retaliates against them. live from the middle east bureau in jerusalem is leland vitter. lelan leland. >> greg, who knows whether president assad will retaliate.

certainly that possibility is open and one he has promised will happen. he said tel-aviv will be bombed if attacked in local newspapers. this is the only thing they're talking about in the news. a tense waiting period in the picture of people lining up for gas masks. there were thousands waiting for gas masks. those who did not get them yesterday are out of luck as the gas mask distribution centers are shut down in israel for friday and saturday the weekend here. we are told there are thousands of people who still do not have them. whether they will be needed or not, nobody knows. israel is clearly moving towards being ready for an assad counterattack. their iron rod missile defense system has been deployed in the morn part not only in tel-aviv and there are some on standby and we learned the weekend leave for soldiers normally able to go home to their families has been canceled. no question the israelis are taking this threat seriously.

we also know the syrian military is taking this seriously and anticipating an attack as well. they have moved some of their major missile systems, scud missiles used to launch chemical weapons and also used to retaliate with conventional weapons, moved those to the mountains. we're told they're clearing out headquarters staff and bases of helicopters those kinds of things, anything they believe could be on the target lists. is there indication they are moving around their chemical weapons stockpiles which could complicate things for u.s. military planners as they want to make sure they don't hit any of those accidentally and cause an even larger chemical situation going. there is a lot of waiting and watching here all around the middle east. there is a feeling the attack will come sometime in the night in order to minimize collateral damage. the other thing that has been a point of discussion in terms of timing is when the u.n. weapons inspectors leave syria, they will leave tomorrow morning, saturday morning, which is in about 12 hours from right now,

here in the middle east. one commentator here said, after watching john kerry's speech, it is now time for the tomahawks to do the talking. greg, whether that happens or not, everyone is anticipating, everybody is talking about. remember here in israel this is viewed as a litmus test for president obama's resolve about iran. you can believe the ayatollahs are watching what happens very very carefully. >> leland vitter, live in jerusalem. thanks. students of recent history certainly will note the descriptions of what assad inflicted on his own people sound a little familiar. they sound like some of what saddam hussein inflicted on the iraqis in the 1990s. listen to this about the danger of not acting. >> it matters because we choose to live in a world where a thug and murderer like bashar al assad can gas thousands of his

own people with impunity, even after the united states and our allies said no. and then the world does nothing about it. there will be no end to the test of our resolve and the dangers that will flow from those others who believe that they can do as they will. >> john bolton, former u.s. ambassador to the united nations during president bush's term and fox news contributor. good to see you. >> glad to be with you. >> what a developing story. i want to ask you about those comparisons to the fact the bush administration had a big decision to make and saddam hussein was taken out and now bashar al assad. >> this has been fascinating to watch for those who criticized the bush administration for its reliance on imperfect intelligence and bush was criticized for that. in fact, all intelligence is imperfect. you have to make a decision based on the best information

you have. president bush was continually accused for acting unilaterally, when in fact in the case of ove overthrowing saddam hussein he had a coalition of between two and three dozen nations at any given time. so far in this episode, it looks like we have france. president bush was criticized for not getting express authorization from the united nations security council. here, we're not going to have express authorization from the u.n. security council. let me just say, personally, as somebody who was frequently criticized by joe biden and john kerry and barack obama, we're only missing chris dodd here, as somebody frequently criticized as being a unilateralist, while i oppose thes use of force against syria i am delight the obama administration is about to act aounilaterally without approval from the u.n. security council. we should take due note of that.

>> almost like they put them aside like it's not that important when secretary kerry mentioned obstructionism. >> there are those particularly in europe who say you have to have authority to use force. there has to be some independent approval for what the obama administration is about to do. that's a very european approach to life. the american approach has always been fundamentally different. our approach is we have the right to act to defend american interests unless there's an express prohibition somewhere. there are no express prohibitions around here. as a matter of policy, i think this impending attack is a bad idea. as a matter of american authority we have all we need. i am delighted the obama administration may be on the verge of proving that yet again. >> i have to ask why you oppose force? >> because i think the strongest argument that those who want to use force have is to set up a deterrent against the use of

chemical weapons or biological or nuclear weapons. i think that is a -- is the correct analysis but it's very clear that the obama administration is going to do very nearly the opposite. prime minister david cameron, before his humiliating defeat in parliament yesterday, spoke of a proportionate response from the allies. the president himself has said that our response would be a shot across the bow of the assad regime. of course, by definition, a shot across the bow doesn't hit anything. but that, under any circumstances, proportionate warning shot will not establish deterrence. deterrence is established by a substantial military action, when the red line is crossed. the red line the president drew. let me give you the historical example of how to deal with the threat of a communist invasion

of europe during the 1950s and 1960s. the united states didn't say to the soviets, if you invade western europe we will respond proportionately. the eisenhower dulles doctrine was called massive retaliation. the communists and soviets invade western europe we will launch a first strike nuclear attack against soviet targets meaning in effect if you attack we will turn the soviet union into a charcoal briquette. that's how you establish deterrence. that's about as far away from what obama's about to do than you can imagine. >> you're not alone in your analysis it has to be done without military intervention. secretary kerry said, don't think, american public, this will look anything like afghanistan, there won't be boots on the ground. they could change their mind at later date, probably talking about an initial attack. i had a conversation late into the evening last night with

general jack keane, four star general who really believes we could do this in even less than three days. if you were to have that conversation with him and hear it could be accomplished and effective and let the rest of the world know the united states can and would not stand for this, would you change your mind? >> no. this is not an abstract discussion. that kind of attack would take place in the specific context of an ongoing civil war in syria. the kind of massive military attack that would create an effect would also tip the balance in this civil war. i have nothing good to say about the assad regime, god nosknows the opposition is a very mixed bag. one can assume there are some people who profess democratic ideals. they'd be foolish if they didn't and still expect western assistance. there are other major opponents of the opposition al qaeda and terrorists. then there's a big, big element of the opposition that's muslim

brotherhood. why we want to do anything that would risk bringing terrorists or the muslim brotherhood to power is beyond me. >> it's hard to imagine a group worse than what assad has created. ambassador, i want to ask you a favor. there's much more to ask you. i want you to stay with us. we are expecting the president to speak in three minutes. we may learn more we want to talk to you about. we'll take a break so we don't miss that. we'll have those remarks and live report from the pentagon and so much more on this critically important story. keep it on fox. >> know what the doctors and nurses who treated them didn't report. not a scratch, not a shrapnel wound, not a cut, not a gunshot wound. we saw rows of deadlined up in burial shrouds. the white linen unstained by a single drop of blood. instead of -- too soft.

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united states government now knows at least 1,429 syrians were killed in this attack, including at least 426 children. even the first responders, doctors, nurses and medics who tried to save them, they became victims themselves. we saw them gasping for air, terrified that their own lives were in danger. this is the in ddiscriminate, n inconceivable horror of chemical weapons. >> secretary of state john kerry laying out the case syria has indeed used chemical weapons as recently as nine days ago against innocent civilians including women and children. 1400 people were killed, according to the secretary, and he says it is in controvertible evidence, based on three things,

intercept intercepted surveillance on videotapes as well as eyewitness accounts and physical evidence itself. the president is going to be addressing this, we are told, in a photoonat the white house. he -- in a photo op at the white house. he is meeting with several baltic leaders. we are told the remarks on syria will be brief by the president. it will happen in 15 minutes from now. we'll bring it to you as soon as we have it. another story a lot of people were talking about yesterday especially if you are hungry, who the growing strike of fast-food workers actually achieved their goals. they got coverage from mainstream media and they were to strike in 167 cities nationwide. what do they want? they want to double their hourly wage, more than most of them earn. the reports are most of the

workers are not taking part in the strike because they're concerned higher wages will mean fewer jobs. senior economic writer for the "wall street journal" and fox news contributor, steve, what did they accomplish? >> first of all, mostly, this was union agitation, the service plooe international union who has its eye on the 13 million workers in the fast-food industry they would love to unionize. one of the key concerns of the people behind the counters and flipping the burgers and managing the fries, those people are concerned about their jobs. remember, the last time we had a big increase in the minimum wage a few years ago, the unemployment rate went way up for especially people who are teenagers and people in that industry. there's a trade-off here, jamie. you might get higher wages for some but you will get less jobs for others. >> that seems to make sense, that the math would work out

that way. as a former burger king girl, i take those jobs knowing you will get minimum wage. now, they are asking for $15 an hour. from what i hear, that's what some college graduates are making and the president's offering $9. right now, it's $7.25. what's reasonable in this day and age? >> when the economy is weak and unemployment is high, as we have the situation we have right now, it makes very little sense to raise the minimum wage because you do throw people out of work. it's a different situation when you have a really low unemployment rate. i believe, and i talked to a lot of people in the fast-food industry. what they tell me, if you double those wages for those jobs, they will move towards automation, they will have much more machines and even robots doing a lot of this stuff. i was out in a restaurant last weekend, what they call the fast

casual restaurants, you order the food now on an ipod, jamie. it's a way to save money on labor. that's happening anyway. you double those wages you will see a lot of jobs in that industry lost. >> that's really interesting. i wanted to ask you this question. it is the service employees international union. what's in it for them? the more people they get to sign on to this strike will get you more minimum wage. they do collect dues from those folks. >> that's exactly right. by the way, those people you were just showing, a lot of those protesters, very few of them are actually restaurant workers. when i talked to the people who have been targeted by these campaigns, they say their workers did not walk off the job. many of them are union agitators. you're right, what's in it for the unions is they have their eye on unionizing these 3.5 million workers. if that happens, jamie, think about what that does for the

unions, taking money out of their paycheck for union dues. it could mean tens of millions of dollars for the union. sure this is about helping the little guy struggling to feed his family. >> and ultimately that paycheck bumped up as a wage may be taken away as a due. thank you. our work is so much a part of who we are as people and a nation, what does it mean for america that so many millions are simply no longer even looking for work? they've just given up. a labor day question about the state of the nation just ahead. again, we're expecting to hear from president obama with his remarks on syria moments from now. secretary kerry laid out the argument powerfully for military action. we'll be back in three minutes. >> we saw rows of deadlined up in burial shrouds.

the white linen unstained by a single drop of blood. instead of being tucked safely in their beds at home, we saw rows of children lying side by si side, sprawled on a hospital floor, all of them dead from assad's gas and surrounded by parents and grandparents who had suffered the same fate. you need a girls' weekend and you need it now. ladies, let's goo vegas. cute! waiter! girls' weekend here! priceline savings without the bidding.

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whether it's a bow and arrow or machine gun, she knows her way around weapons. you google her name and you can find her videos of her shooting skills all over the place. yesterday, the wife of the little miss danger singer ted nugent was arrested for packing heat in her carry-on luggage. her attorney says it was an honest mistake saying shiites

completely forgot the gun was in her bag or didn't know it was there in the first place. she's very embarrassed. she's never been in this situation before. she expressed remorse for any in k inconvene jens for public safety official and is not expected to be indicted. ted nugent in a strong supporter of gun views. she is not the only one to be caught at the airport with a gun. it is the number one airport in the country. 57 guns taken into custody the end of july, number one. number 3 is bush int inter-continental airport in houston. maybe it's a texas thing. we do not expect she will be prosecuted for this. apparently it will be a slap on the wrist and off she goes. it makes big news because she has a lot of google weapons

videos on the net. >> that falls under the category of whoops. thanks, trace. >> sure. >> we will learn much more. we will be back in three minutes. we'll go live to the pentagon, live to the white house and hopefully hear from the president on syria. they are saying out of the white house we will. stay with us. okay, listen up! i'm re-workin' the menu. mayo? corn dogs? you are so outta here! aah! [ female announcer ] the complete balanced nutrition of great-tasting ensure. 24 vitamins and minerals, antioxidants, and 9 grams of protein. [ bottle ] ensure®. nutrition inharge™. [ bottle ] ensure®. we believe it can be the most valuable real estate on earth.

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fox news alert. the president's taped details on syria starting to leak out. he says he has not made a decision on military action yet. that comes as opposition forces in syria claim the military is removing scud missiles and military hardware from sites likely to be destroyed if there were a u.s. attack. national security correspondent jennifer griffin live at the pentagon. i was justing t thinking how mu information that come your way the last 24 hours. what is the latest? >> i was told this morning we would essentially know in the next 12 hours whether the president planned to move ahead with the strike. now, secretary of state john kerry sounding very presidential laid out the case for military action and how the sources knew the assad regime carried out the attack. >> we know for three days before the attack the syrian regime's chemical weapons personnel were on the ground, in the area,

making preparations we know the syrian regime elements were told to prepare for the attack by putting on gas masks and taking precautions. >> of course, kerry's statement three days in advance of the august 21st attack intelligence showed the regime was making preparations for a chemical attack raises the question why the u.s. and its allies did not try to stop it. administration officials suggested that intelligence may not have been received in realtime. the white house released a map that shows 12 different sites affected by the chemical weapons that were fired. administration officials also say they have intelligence showing regime activity in a well-known area where the regime has mixed serin gas in the past. in the meantime, the pentagon is watching as assad moves his scud missiles and other military launches out of his bases. those bases are being emptied

out meaning the targets have to be reset. a defense official says it would have been better to attack syria a few days ago before they had time to move their missiles and other hardware likely to be targeted in any u.s. military strike. most military staff have been ordered to stay home for the next few days, syria expecting a strike. the administration was extremely upset about a front page story today in the, not outlining potential targets they thought was awfully close to the planned military strike. u.s. officials making the case to reporters moments ago there is no question the use of these chemical weapons was a mistake or carried out by a rogue unit within the regime. they have intelligence showing this was a deliberate attack by the regime. right now, there are also reports the regime is busing in prisoners to the air base outside damascus, attempting, one speculates, to use those prisoners as human shields. >> we will talk to you soon.

thank you. we are waiting for what's known as playback. this is videotape. sometimes it's literally just minutes earlier when the president is at what we call a photo op. he's meeting with baltic leaders at the white house. we are told he will address the situation in syria. let's go back to our chief white house correspondent, ed henry, live at the white house. ed, is this going to be just a brief statement? is it going to be in response to questions? you have any idea? >> not questions. we're told it's the top of the statement about his meeting with baltic leaders and addressing the situation in syria. some of those reporters part of the press poll with the president inside the west wing are reporting out some of the things he said. number one, he said he has not made a final decision yet. we heard that several days from white house officials. certainly, what we heard from secretary of state john kerry earlier today if not hinted at, all but said they're inching

closer to military action when secretary kerry again and again said a failure to act would be worse. they could not stand by identically while this dictator moved forward and continued to gas his own people. the president, we're told, also went on to say the chemical weapons used in syria threatened u.s. national security interests. why is that important? that's the buzz phrase about threatening u.s. national security interests, the buzz phrase to spark u.s. military action. doesn't mean he's made up his mind but inches closer to it. he has to make the case to the american people this is not just an awful tragedy president assad gassed his own people. we heard that in great detail from secretary kerry. we know that. will the u.s. do something about it? does it threaten our national security interests? that's an open question and why you hear lawmakers in both parties not just republicans but democrats in the house and senate saying they want a debate on capitol hill and they want

maybe even a vote to authorize use of force because there's a question about whether or not this really does threaten our national security interests. final point i'll make the president, we're told, went on to say. we should have this tape in just a moment, as you noted, that syria also threatens our allies in the region, israel, jordan, turkey. we should note if the u.s. does move forward with military action syria could still retaliate by attacking israel or jordan, and so whether we act or don't act, our allies in the region are obviously under some threat and you heard retired colonel ralph peters said he heard a lot of melodrama from secretary kerry about this awful tranni tragedy but still did not hear a military strategy what they will do in terms of action and how to get out. that's what we're still waiting to hear. when you hear what the president's saying, a lot of what he just told reporters, we'll have it on tape in a

moment, the reports we're getting is very similar to what we've heard before. if he's saying he has not made a final decision, when and if he does make a final decision to have military action go forward we would expect to hear from him again. at that point you would expect him to lay out some sort of military strategy so the american people can have buy-in or not. >> live at the white house, ed henry, thanks. we're waiting for the remarks by the president. they'll be brief, at the white house, in just a moment. jamie. >> greg, thanks. i want to bring in lisa, a middle east journalist. welcome. this is a topic we can talk to you about, given so many years of experience in the region. the question i wanted to ask you, secretary kerry called assad a thug and murderer. i'm sensing you wouldn't disagree with that. what do you think the appropriate action is for our president to take? >> no one will disagree with that or the fact syria crossed

many lines including president obama's red line and other international lines in using chemical weapons. there is a saying in persia that says i poke out my eye in order to punish my eyebrow. that's the perfect way to describe what's going on here. there should be a punishment. there should be a slap on the wrist for the assad regime for using chemical weapto deter the again against the civilian population. that's all correct. what makes this incorrect is the lack of strategy. what makes this incorrect is the same reasons we hesitated to get ourselves involved in syria to begin with. we were concerned the weapons we provide would fall into the wrong hands. we were concerned the chemical weapons could be moved around and get into the wrong hands. we could see a potential passoff scenario, the same chemical weapons could be used against our ally israel against us and there are terror cells in the west and u.s. those same reason, those same

fears we had from the beginning of the situation, at least a year ago, are still present and they're even more of a threat now because we are -- we're asking for retaliation. the assad regime, iranian regime have not been shy about telling us there will be a price to be paid for these strikes no matter how limited and how targeted these strikes are. >> lisa, that could affect us. it could affect the allies, those mentioned and not mentioned and president obama, through secretary kerry seems to suggest there's a possibility that he would go it alone. i want you to explain to the american people what our interests are in that region that we would be protecting if we were to teach assad a lesson and show the rest of the world that this is not something we tolerate here. >> the main argument here is to say he went against the red line that president obama had drawn over a year ago, which is correct, he did cross that line,

he used chemical weapons. another argument would be to deter them from using chemical weapons again. it would also be a lesson or some sort of symbolic gesture towards iran, the iranian regime to say we can't be pushed around. but, again, there's a misconception or misunderstanding of the real core of the issue. with iran, we said it was the nuclear weapons. in reality it's the regime that would use those nuclear weapons. with assad he has chemical weapons, not really the chemical weapons but the regime would use those chemical weapons. in effect, the attacks, limited military strikes he wants to call them that are in effect only going to awaken or renew this sense of targeting the west. that means for us here at home, we know that these terror cells, hezbollah cells exist. we know the iranian regime has

informants in the west. their tentacles are far reaching. they made that statement and said the retaliation is going to be harsh. >> understanding. depending on the action taken the response could be qually or more harsh. thank you so much, lisa. great to have a chance to talk to you today. >> my pleasure. greg. we are getting more details what the president said and maybe more importantly, we're hearing from one top democrat in the u.s. senate suggesting the evidence is there for a military response. we'll be back in three minutes with all of that. ask me what it's like to get your best night's sleep every night. [announcer] why not talk to someone who's sleeping on the most highly recommended d in america? ask me about my tempur-pedic. ask me how fast i fall asleep.

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fox news alert. in two minutes we are told we will be able to show you what the president said about syria. in the meantime, let's go back to ambassador john bolton standing by. ambassador, in recent history, when presidents have acted unilaterally, with a military

strike, it's only done so in response to an attack on or threat to americans. bill clinton, george h.w. bush, ronald reagan. this would be different, would it not? >> no, i don't think so. i think when bill clinton got a nato agreement to attack serbia in the late 1990s because of the serbian attacks on cost so - so -- kosovo, that was another attack there there were no united states interests at stake, what's about to happen here. in both cases there was no chance the security council would agree to u.s. or nato action because of a russian veto. here are two clear cases this notion the u.s. can only act with the security council's approval or act militarily without it would violate the u.n. charter are wrong.

>> ambassador bolton, thank you for standing by. we may come back to you in just a moment. we are awaiting the president's remarks. he is in the white house meeting with leaders in the baltic region. we were give an heads-up he would make remarks. here it is. >> everybody set up? obvious obviously, i'm very grateful to have my former presidents here as well as vice president. before i begin i want to say a few things about the situation in syria. we've released our unclassified assessment detailing with high confidence the syrian regime carried out a chemical weapons attack that killed well over a thousand people including hundreds of children. this follows a horrific images that shocked us all. this kind of attack is a challenge to the world. we cannot accept a world where women and children and innocent

civilians are gassed on a terrible scale. this kind of attack threatens our national security interests by violating well established international norms against the use of chemical weapons by further threatening friends and allies in the region like israel and turkey and jordan. and it increases the risk chemical weapons will be used in the future and fall into the hands of terrorists who might use them against us. so i have said before and i meant what i said, that the world has an obligation to make sure that we maintain the norm against the use of chemical weapons. now, i have not made a final decision about various actions that might be taken to help enforce that norm. but as i've already said, i have

had my military and our team look at a wide range of options. we have consulted with allies, we've consulted with congress, we have been in conversations with all the interested parties, and in no event are we considering any kind of military action that would involve boots on the ground, that would involve a long term campaign, but we are looking at the possibility of a limited narrow act that would help make sure that not only syria but others around the world understand that the international community cares about maintaining this chemical weapons ban and norm. again, i repeat. we're not considering any open ended commitment.

we're not considering any boots on the ground approach. what we will do is considering options that meet the narrow concern around chemical weapons, understanding that there's not going to be a solely military solution to the underlying conflict and tragedy that's taking place in syria. and i will continue to consult closely with congress in addition to the release of the unclassified document, we are providing a classified briefing to congressional staff today and will offer that same classified briefing to members of congress as well as our international partners. i will continue to provide updates to the american people as we get more information. with that, i want to welcome the president

presidents to the white house. these countries that they represent all share very deep ties to the united states, both as both as allies and the extraordinary people-to-people religious we have with these countries. i want to thank all the presidents here and their nations for all they do to promote democracy, not only in their own countries but around the world. the baltics are among our most reliable allies in nato, and our commitment to their security is rock solid. our soldiers sacrificed together in afghanistan -- >> president saying i have not made a final decision about various actions that might be taken. former u.s. ambassador john bolton is with us. your reaction to what you just heard. >> again, the president keeps stressing how limited this strike is going to be. this is music to the ears of both assad and the ayatollahs in

tehran. he says there's no boots on the ground, not calling for regime change, all of which suggests that this strike is going to be so limited it's not going to have a deterrent effect, number one. number two, very important point here. the president and secretary kerry have now over the past ten days repeatedly talked about syria's violation of international norms. if there were ever an administration that would love to say there was a violation of international law, this would be it and they don't say it, because in fact syria has not violated international law to the extent it matters to anybody. so what we have here in an effort to define a threat to american national security, is the existence of a humanitarian tragedy in syria, and i think that takes the definition of national security and makes utterly unmanageable. the united states is not in charge of managing tragedy

around the world, and yet that's what the president seems to be saying. >> there were two sentences, put together, one might draw the following conclusion. this threatens national security interests in the next sentence he talks about the chemical weapons assad had could land in the hands of terrorists. now, he didn't exactly put those together and say that's our national security interest because terrorists could get their hands on them and use them against americans or american strategic interests. but is that what he is saying? >> who knows. i don't think this is what he actually means because this attack is supposed to be in response to the use of chemical weapons against innocent civilians. in fact it is contrary to american national interests if the chemical weapons got in the hands of terrorists. that's the red line he should have drawn. airs another contradiction. if he responds forcefully enough

to change the balance of power inside sirra, -- inside syria, and then the opposition, which chaos include al qaeda could have more of a prospect of getting ahold of some or all of syria's arsenal. so the attack itself could endanger the national security if the terrorists are enabled to get their hands on the kim cal weapons. it shows the complete ill logic inside the administration's thinking, which stretches out day-by-day, enabling the assad regime to do more to disburse command and control communications function to hide the assets the attack would like lie target, and generally increase their defenses. this whole thing, as it stretches out day-by-day, risks becoming less and less effective. >> i assume, ambassador, the fact this has been going on for quite some time and time is not

our friend. allow me to go back to something secretary kerry said to asker thoughts. he said we're not alone in both condemnation of what has occurred by the assad regime, and in readiness to take action. who is with us? >> well, as best i could tell the only nation that may have the potential to join us in the use of military force, which at the end of the day is the only thing that matters, is france, and this, again, i think shows the isolation of the united states here. this is an international norm, as the president said, that the international community,ing a the president said, wants to uphold, why can't the international community do that? the answer is the security council is hopelessly divided. so, let me be clear. i oppose the use of force here but i'm delighted the president is prepared to act unilaterally without any international approval from the u.n. or anybody else. this is a point about american sovereignty, that the bush

administration was roundly criticized for, for not getting security council approval, for being a unilateralist administration, and i think when the obama administration acts in a decidedly position -- it will be helpful to the united states in the years ahead. that's the one silver lining. >> you believe it, without the uk, the president would act unilaterally also he is saying in. >> i think he has to act unilaterally from his own perspective. he has been played for a fool by the assad regulartime. this is the sicked time now since the drawing of the red line. if the doesn't do something, it's just hopeless from his spiff. but as i say, if his use of force here is proportional and limited both in scope and duration, i think it will leave the united states in a worse position after it because it will show fecklessness, a lack

of seriousness, lack of determination, it will not create the deterrent effect to the use of chemical weapons or other weapons of mass destruction that the president purportedly wants to establish. >> i've only got 30 seconds left, ambassador. but there are great many in his own party that are not behind the president. polling data indicates almost 80% of the americans are not behind the president. did you hear anything from secretary kerry or the president that might change those minds? >> i don't think so. i think it's the same thing we have seen before. i don't think the president has a constitutional obligat seek congressional authorization here budget he ought to think about the politics before he goes ahead on his own. >> you have been with us for the entire hour, and we thank you very much for your insight. >> thank you so much, ambassador. much more on this. thank you so much for watching, everyone. "studio b" with trace gallagher in for shepard smith begins right after the break.

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>> this is "studio b." president obama saying moments ago that he has not made a decision on taking action against the syrian regime for using chemical weapons, but the president says, quote, this kind of offense is a challenge to the world. that minutes are the secretary of state john kerry addressed reporters and the public, laying out some of the evidence against syria, and while the u.s. intelligence officials are highly confident that assad's regime used chemical weapons to target innocent civilians. inside syria. word the military forces there have made move to prepare for any possible strike. we'l